Water Life movie trailer: Hot Docs Film Festival 2009

I thought I'd post some of the amazing Hot Docs Film Festival trailers for you to see. I'm very impressed with what I've seen so far and I will be posting more of them tomorrow so stay tuned.

I'm a huge documentary film fan if you haven't already noticed. It's a powerful way of revealing subjects and events that are generally not seen in the main stream media. And documentaries are spreading like wild fire. They're opening the world up so we can decide what's really going on, and what are the lies being fed to us.

It is estimated that there are more tigers in captivity in the United States than roaming around in the wild of the world

Watch this! I had no idea.

Reporter: A new Hot Docs movie trailer

Black Wave: A documentary about the greatest environmental disaster

This looks really well done.

Take care of yourself and you won't get sick... simple.

A couple of places we've been to in the last few days...

Me and James at Canada's wonderland in front of the scarriest ride... the merry-go-round.

The next few photos were taken while on a hike in the Cheltanham Badlands. It was very beautiful, and strange for a place in Ontario. The trees surrounding the area were filled to the brim with Saskatoon berries too!

Almost nothing can grow in this clay-thick soil.

James was running all over red hills. We want to go back and take some black and white photos at night during a full moon.

very quick and to the point meat message:

why no one but calves should drink cow's milk:

Another really important video on why no one but calves should drink cow's milk. I have also the link to this other one here called 'You and Your Milk' (very well done too).

a cat adopts baby squirrels??

For those who haven't seen this reunion between a lion and the people who raised him:

There is now a book that has just been released by the same title: Christian the Lion, about this story- i've heard it's amazing. This video makes me cry every time.

2 Week Master Cleanse Detox Talk:

Ok so my two week fast is over and I want to tell you some of what the results are so you might go and try this yourself! I was doing the Master Cleanse which means I only drank water with fresh lemon juice, cayenne pepper and a bit of maple syrup. I also drank plain water and did salt-water flushes, which is the worst part, but i got used to it, where you mix 1 teaspoon to 1 Tablespoon of sea salt in 1 litre of wawm water and you drink it all at once. This acts as a sweep of you colon so you have to be near a washroom. It's very effective and I suggest doing it because with the lemonaide (of sorts) you detox your body, but then you need to move all those toxins out or they will just reabsorb back in.

I finished the fast with something that might seem odd to you... a colonic, which is where you go to a specialist who irrigates your colon with water for about an hour. It's not painful or humiliating- actually it's something pretty gentle (from my experiences). Even as a vegan I could feel that my body needed to detox, as I don't always eat organic food and I have a bit of a sweet addiction form time to time. Also fear and stress can store toxins in the body as well. If you are in Toronto the best place to go for a colonic is The Canadian Natural Health and Healing Centre.

A sense of accomplishment comes from sticking with it. I feel wonderful now- my skin is clear, my stomach is flat and my eyes look clear. It amazes me that I had plenty of energy during the whole process. I rode my bike to and from work every day as usual, I played baseball, I went on hikes, and even had the will power to bake an awesome vegan cake for a birthday party without tasting a crumb! (that was hard actually). I didn't feel hungry during the fast- I felt needy, like I wanted to eat because everyone else was eating, but I was definitely not hungry. There were no hunger pains.

I lost about 10 pounds as a side effect (that I wasn't necessarily aiming for, but it's nice). Apparently the toxins, when our purifying organs (the liver and kidneys), can't deal with them at the moment because we never give them a rest, store the toxins in fat cells. And when your body is not taking in food it stops creating the strong acids that break down food in our stomachs and burns fat for energy, releasing the toxins (how many times can I say toxins?).

Well I'm so excited about what I did that I thought I'd tell whoever cares to listen. I hope you all try it- you can definitely do this! Your body will thank you soooo much and you'll feel like a brand new person when you're done.

Squeaks Rose Toth and Josh

I just found this picture of Josh and Squeaks Rose Toth (the squirrel), and it made me laugh so I thought I'd put it up. I've been feeling emotional lately as this is day 10 of the Master Cleanse Fast for me. I'm detoxing big time. I finished the book called Juice Fasting, which is a bit different than the Master Cleanse, but I learned a LOT about how the boy functions and why fasting is soooo important.

I don't feel hungry but I got a little cranky when James is eating the awesome curry I made for him without tasting it. What I'm actually looking for is a moment of clarity where I will suddenly know what direction to take in my life. I feel sort of like I've been floating around aimlessly for quite some time now. I have decided that I'm not going to eat until I have that moment. We'll see how it goes. By the way... Happy Gay Pride Everyone!! (at least here in Toronto).

Josh in a battle of the bands!

This kid is 16, taller than me (he's over 6 feet), and grew up vegetarian and now vegan for the past 9 years! It was awesome to watch him on stage for the first time. Nice Rupert shirt.

'Home' Movie Trailer- really beautiful and thought provoking

Ok I just watched the whole movie with James on youtube as if we were in a theatre. The quality is superb, and let's talk about this movie... I've never seen anything so incredible! I am stunned. When I put the trailer up I thought it was nice, but watching the movie, well I just can't say enough. I'm going to go see it in the theatre on a massive screen just to soak it all in.

Here is the link to the full movie. Please watch this. You'll love it!

A word from the late Carl Sagan about our planet:

This is beautiful, and says it all.

Happy Father's Day Cupcakes!! (Vanilla Cranberry, and they're vegan!)

Happy Father's Day to all those great guys who stuck by their women through it all, and for those who welcomed children into their lives and took care of them as their own! The world needs more of you. Have a cupcake on me!

In a large bowl:
3 c unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/3 c dried cranberries
1 1/2 c raw sugar (or brown sugar)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 Teaspoons vanilla
2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar (or white vinegar)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 c veggie margarine

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. 2. Mix all the ingredients with a fork until well blended. 3. Use paper cupcake holders inside of two muffin trays. 4. Fill them up with the batter. 5. Put them in the oven for 25 minutes (or until a skewer comes out dry when you poke the center of it).

Awesome Vanilla Cranberry Frosting:
4 c icing sugar
2 Tablespoons water
1/2 c veggie margarine
pinch of sea salt
1/3 c dried cranberries (added only after the previous ingredients have been well blended in a food processor)

1. Mix all ingredients (except the cranberries) for the frosting in a food processor for a couple of minutes until it becomes smooth. 2. add the dried cranberries and blend for a few seconds more. 3. Scoop out into a container and chill it in the fridge for a few minutes. 4. Frost those cupcakes!!

This recipe rocks if I do say so myself. Josh and I made it up last night. Enjoy! (makes about 20 cupcakes)

* To make this into an awesome cake just grease 2 cake pans (with veggie margarine), and divide the batter between the two. Then bake for 40 - 45 minutes, or until a skewer comes out dry when you poke the center of it. Everything else is the same and it's soooo delicious and rich! You'll love it!